Race 1: Markus Pommer (Super Nova) goes from pole to victory.

Markus Pommer went from pole to victory in Race 1 of the Auto GP weekend at Monza. The German, driving for Super Nova, had set the fastest lap of the day yesterday and retained the spot at the start, successfully controlling his opponents until the checkered flag fell. In second place, Tamas Pal Kiss (Zele Racing) recovered well after a complicated qualifying session. The Hungarian opted for an early pit-stop, a strategy that eventually paid off to hand him another valuable result. In third, Michela Cerruti scored her maiden podium finish in the series. Driving the second Super Nova car, she won an exciting duel with Andrea Roda (Virtuosi UK) to take third place.

Michele La Rosa, driving for MLR71 by Eurovova, rounded out the top-5 behind Roda and in front of returning Francesco Dracone (Super Nova), Giuseppe Cipriani (Ibiza Racing Team) and Kevin Giovesi (Eurotech), scored respectively 7th and 8th place. The latter paid the price a pit miscue when his left rear got stuck at the tire change, and had to surrender second place. His team was also assessed a 500€ fine for executing the change with an excessive number of crewmen.

Zele Racing’s Samin Gomez, making her Auto GP debut, managed to score points as she crossed the line in front of Euronova’s Japanese racer Yoshitaka Kuroda, who was slowed down by a puncture while fighting for fourth place and had to serve and unscheduled stop. He was also penalized 25” for scoring his fastest lap with the yellow flags exposed. His team-mate and fellow countryman Shinya Michimi also experienced bad luck as he was forced to retire after slowing down at Lesmo 1. A first-lap contact put out of contention Loris Spinelli (Eurotech) and Christof von Grunigen (Zele Racing). The Pescara-based a 10-place penalty for tomorrow’s grid for an incident in the first conrner.

Race 2: Kevin Giovesi (Eurotech) and Andrea Roda (Virtuosi UK) ignite home crowd.

Kevin Giovesi, driving for Eurotech, went from pole to win in Race 2 of the Auto GP round at Monza. The Italian, who started out front thanks to the reverse top-8 grid format, held the lead comfortably and managed to administrate his margin over Virtuosi UK’s Andrea Roda. The Como-based racer, who settled for second for just a few thousands of a second, scored his best career Auto GP finish after a great start that brought him past Giuseppe Cipriani (Ibiza Racing Team). Markus Pommer (Super Nova) secured the 20.000€ bonus for being the best driver of the weekend: after cruising to victory in Race 1, he captured a podium finish today.

Yoshitaka Kuroda (Euronova) ended up in fourth place, edging Zele Racing’s Hungarian Tamas Pal Kiss who was passed by Pommer in standings. The points zone was completed by Shinya Michimi (Euronova Racing), Michela Cerruti (Super Nova), Cipriani, Christof von Grunigen (Zele Racing) and Francesco Dracone (Super Nova). A drive-through penalty jeopardized the race of Eurotech’s Loris Spinelli.

All Photos Auto GP.